A Stop Payment Does Not Mean the Check Is Gone Yet
When a stop payment is placed, the check is still legally outstanding until the bank confirms it will never clear. In MIP®, that means the original check should remain open during reconciliation. Clearing it early creates a timing problem that does not reflect what the bank is actually doing.
Once the bank confirms the stop payment is final, the correct step is to void the check in Accounts Payable. That reverses the general ledger activity cleanly and removes the item from future reconciliations. If the payment is still owed, the check can then be reissued with proper documentation. Forcing a clear skips this logic and usually leads to reconciliation questions later.
Handling stop payments this way keeps the reconciliation aligned with bank reality and preserves a defensible audit trail. The timing difference belongs to the bank process, not an accounting shortcut, and letting it resolve properly avoids cleanup work in later periods.
This video is for accounting teams that want reconciliations to reflect what actually happened instead of what was most convenient at the time. It is not intended for organizations that prefer to override timing and explain it away later.
McGovern Consulting Group provides MIP Accounting® Training and Implementation Services. We focus on transaction timing and reconciliation discipline because small choices like this determine whether issues resolve cleanly or linger.
If you want stop payments and reconciliations handled correctly the first time, schedule time with us to review your process.
https://mcgoverncg.com/schedule/
If you prefer to strengthen your MIP fundamentals first, free MIP® fund accounting training is available here.
https://www.freemipfundaccountingtraining.com/
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